create a
safe anchorage, they formed the Fish Cove Harbor Association, and dug a channel
across land they purchased to connect Fish Cove with the Josias River. When the
trench was complete, erosion helped to further widen the passage. The resulting
tidewater basin is called Perkins Cove, spanned by a manually operated draw
footbridge. With a 3½-mile beach of pale sand and dunes forming a barrier
peninsula, connected to the mainland in 1888 by bridge across the Ogunquit
River, the village was discovered by artists. It became a popular art colony
and tourist area. Particularly after 1898, when the Ogunquit Art Colony was
established, it was not unusual to see both artists and fishermen working
around Perkins Cove. To accommodate summer crowds, several seaside hotels and
inns were built. Marginal Way, a scenic trail, runs along the coast from Perkins
Cove to Ogunquit Beach. Ogunquit separated from Wells in 1980 and receives
visitors from as far as Australia. Part of Stephen King's The Stand, published in 1978, is set
in Ogunquit
